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In Hainsight: Down for the Count |
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Follow me @KarineHains for all updates about the Montreal Canadiens and women's hockey
Martin St-Louis had said that he wanted his team to focus on its defensive play and sort it out, he wanted his guys to have a good start to the game and unfortunately, it failed on both counts. Less than 3 minutes in, Joel Edmundson took a delay of game penalty for sending the puck straight into the crowd and it would turn out to be a costly penalty, not only did Nashville score but they established momentum that they would never relinquish. Within 11 minutes, the Predators lead 3-0 and given that the Habs only score more than 3 goals once in a blue moon these days (the last time was December 6th when they scored 4 against Seattle), the result of the duel was a foregone conclusion.
The 6-3 loss could have been much worse though as star winger Cole Caufield left the game during the 2nd period after a knee-on-knee accidental contact with defenseman Mattias Ekholm. Thankfully, the Canadiens’ only consistent scoring threat returned shortly thereafter, not without causing Habsland to hold its collective breath. Unlike last season, Caufield oozes confidence and keeps scoring at a more than respectable pace. He currently has 22 goals to his name in 38 games, on pace for 47 goals. Given how badly things are going for the Habs these days though and how tough their schedule looks from now till the end of the season, it will be a miracle if he can stay the course, but he’ll more than likely break the 40 goals barrier, a rare bright spot this season and one the Canadiens just cannot afford to lose.
While everyone knew the Canadiens weren’t going to make the playoffs this season, the severity of the last 3 defeats has been a cause of concern for many. When a game is close and you’ve got a chance to win it, your players get valuable experience and learn in a competitive environment. When you’re losing by a few goals with no chance to get back though, the game doesn’t mean anything and everyone on and off the ice knows it.
Hopefully, the return home will be salutary for Marty St-Louis’ men, but the Canadiens’ record at home isn’t exactly brilliant either, in 16 games so far, the Habs have won 7. Still, winning isn’t paramount this season, and just managing to be competitive in every contest would do just well for a rebuilding team who needs as high a draft pick as it can get at the end of June.
Given the latest results, it wouldn’t be surprising if Kent Hughes started to part with assets sooner rather than later. The Habs will clearly be sellers and the sooner they sell, the better their odds of drafting high gets. As soon as Sean Monahan returns from injury and proves he’s still able to perform at the same level, I expect he’ll be traded, a contending team could use the center especially if the Canadiens retain some salary. Even if Monahan will be a rental on an expiring deal, a first-round pick is a highly likely return, they could even get more, after all Ben Chiarot did fetch a first, a second and a prospect in Ty Smilanic.
The Habs will be back in action tomorrow night against the New York Rangers and we’ll see if home ice can help them regain some kind of competitiveness.
Montreal Canadiens Blogger • 
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